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Wednesday, September 27, 2006

TAG - a book meme got me

I got tagged for a book meme by KA at Biblioblography. I read all the time, two or three books at a time for almost 30 years. Here are my Answers.1. A book that changed your lifeDancers in the Afterglow by Jack L. Chalker was a silly little sci-fi paperback that I was reading in 1979. The book became valuable when I wrote my future wife’s phone number inside the cover. The story is long forgotten. My wife and I just celebrated 26 years together. I still own the book.

2. A book you’ve read more than onceSleepless Nights on the Procrustean Bed by Harlan Ellison. Ellison’s essay about the murder of John Lennon may be the best essay I have ever read. Also, The Lord of the Rings & the Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien.

3. 1 book you’d want on a desert island…any book that teaches water purification techniques. But seriously – I would have to go with The Lord of the Rings. It is such a pleasure to read.

4. 1 book that made you giddyGiddy? WTF? I would have to say that all books make me giddy, except those that are about death and dismemberment, or books about math, or are religious tomes… OK, so not all books make me giddy, but most do.

5. 1 book you wish that had been writtenEnders Game – Even though Orson Scott Card is a little whacked (thus I should have written it!).

6. 1 book that made you sobHarlan Ellison’s Death Bird Stories (I think) contained a short essay about putting his dog to sleep. I threw an autographed hardcover edition across the room when I read it. He’s such a bastard, such an annoying talented bastard.

7. 1 book you wish had never been writtenMein Kampf by he who should only be named in comparison to right wing conservative Christian theocrats. The book was insane & millions of people died – can a book be unwritten? I actually read the damn thing while stuck in Paris one summer. I got a few looks.

8. 1 book you’re currently readingThe End of Faith – Sam Harris. It seems nice, of course, I’ve only read through one chapter. So far he’s only said “Religious moderation is the root of all evil” a dozen times. I hope the book offers something else. I mean, I get the message already.

9. 1 book you’ve been meaning to readChina, Inc. by Roderick Macleod is classic tome on doing business with China. I’ve been meaning to read it for months now. If I keep putting it off, I won’t need to read it at all in just a few short months.